Sonoma Sister Cities Association (SSCA) will be hosting Anatoliy Leontyev, the president of the Kaniv/Ukraine Friendship Society, August 12th-14th. The public is invited to a reception in his honor at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, 551 Broadway, on Friday, August 12th from 5:00-7:00pm.
Mr. Leontyev will be on hand to meet the community and speak about the current status of our Ukrainian sister city Kaniv. In addition to his position as President of the Friendship Society, Mr. Leontyev is an artist and a university professor. A sample of his work will be on display at the event.
The Kaniv/Ukraine Friendship Society has been instrumental in working with SSCA to accept the donations our community has generously been giving support our sister city during this time of need.
Sonoma has had a sister city relationship with Kaniv since 1987. A town of 29,000 people, Kaniv is located on the Dnieper River some 90 miles south of Kyiv. While not currently under direct attack, since the Russian invasion Kaniv has hosted an average of 4000 refugees daily fleeing the war-torn areas of Ukraine. To date, Sonoma’s have raised and donated over $90,000. which has been used to provide humanitarian aid for refugees and protective gear for local soldiers.
Please contact Kaeti Bailie, Sonoma-Kaniv Sister City Committee Chair, at 707-294-7388 or at kaeti@artifaxsonoma.com if you’d like more information.
